by Kay | May 11, 2011 | Weekly Feature |
“Waiting On” Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted over at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that are being eagerly anticipated.
Charmfall by Chloe Neill
Goodreads -YA – January 2012 by Gollancz
High school can be a battlefield, but for Lily Parker, surviving at St. Sophia’s School for Girls is a matter of life and death…
Protecting Chicago from the dark side can be an exhausting job, especially when you’re a sophomore. So when the girls of St. Sophia’s start gearing up for Sneak, their fall formal, Lily decides to join in on some good, old-fashioned party prep—even if it means not giving demons, vampires and the twisted magic users known as Reapers her undivided attention.
But when a Reaper infiltrates the school, Lily doesn’t forget what she’s sworn to protect. She reaches deep into herself to draw out her magic—and finds that it’s gone. And it turns out she’s not alone. A magical blackout has slammed through paranormal Chicago, and no one knows what—or who—caused it. But Lily knows getting back her magic is worth the risk of going behind enemy lines…
Despite the ick that was Hexbound, I can’t help but be excited about Charmfall, the third book in Chloe Neill’s Dark Elite series… perhaps if Hexbound had come out sooner, I would have like it more? Either way, I wish Charmfall weren’t coming out in January! I am hoping for more Sebastian (who really seems like a nice guy… who works on the side of evil) and the restoration of the awesome Lily/Scout dynamic.
by Kay | Apr 27, 2011 | Weekly Feature |
“Waiting On” Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted over at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that are being eagerly anticipated.
State of Wonder by Ann Patchett
Goodreads – June 6, 2011 by Harper (US) and Bloomsbury (UK)“In this life we love who we love. There were some stories in which facts were very nearly irrelevant.”
Dr. Marina Singh, a research scientist with a Minnesota pharmaceutical company, is sent to Brazil to track down her former mentor, Dr. Annick Swenson, who seems to have all but disappeared in the Amazon while working on what is destined to be an extremely valuable new drug, the development of which has already cost the company a fortune. Nothing about Marina’s assignment is easy: not only does no one know where Dr. Swenson is, but the last person who was sent to find her, Marina’s research partner Anders Eckman, died before he could complete his mission. Plagued by trepidation, Marina embarks on an odyssey into the insect-infested jungle in hopes of finding her former mentor as well as answers to several troubling questions about her friend’s death, the state of her company’s future, and her own past.
Once found, Dr. Swenson, now in her seventies, is as ruthless and uncompromising as she ever was back in the days of Grand Rounds at Johns Hopkins. With a combination of science and subterfuge, she dominates her research team and the natives she is studying with the force of an imperial ruler. But while she is as threatening as anything the jungle has to offer, the greatest sacrifices to be made are the ones Dr. Swenson asks of herself, and will ultimately ask of Marina, who finds she may still be unable to live up to her teacher’s expectations.
In a narrative replete with poison arrows, devouring snakes, and a neighboring tribe of cannibals, State of Wonder is a world unto itself, where unlikely beauty stands beside unimaginable loss. It is a tale that leads the reader into the very heart of darkness, and then shows us what lies on the other side.
I don’t usually feature literary fiction here – but I absolutely adore Ann Patchett. She’s one of those authors who knows how to construct a novel with a style so effortless you know it required endless planning. The saying that the best coincidences require a lot of planning? Well, that’s Ann Patchett. Her novel The Magician’s Assistant is one of my very favourites. And her last novel, Run, was absolutely stunning. I’ve spent the last 5 years desperately awaiting news about a new book, so imagine my joy to hear about State of Wonder!
The only thing I am worried about in this book is the “research” aspect. Pharmaceutical researchers are infamous for their animal testing, but I’m going to hope that Dr. Marina Singh is one of the rare few who does not engage in this disgusting practice! Otherwise she shall be rather difficult (read: impossible) to relate to!
by Kay | Apr 13, 2011 | Weekly Feature |
“Waiting On” Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted over at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that are being eagerly anticipated.
A Long, Long Sleep by Anna Sheehan
Goodreads -YA – August 9, 2011 by Candlewick
Rosalinda Fitzroy has been asleep for sixty-two years when she is woken by a kiss. Locked away in the chemically-induced slumber of a stasis tube in a forgotten sub-basement, sixteen-year-old Rose slept straight through the Dark Times that killed millions and utterly changed the world she knew. Now, her parents and her first love are long dead, and Rose – hailed upon her awakening as the long-lost heir to an interplanetary empire – is thrust alone into a future in which she is viewed as either a freak or a threat. Desperate to put the past behind her and adapt to her new world, Rose finds herself drawn to the boy who kissed her awake, hoping that he can help her to start fresh. But when a deadly danger jeopardizes her fragile new existence, Rose must face the ghosts of her past with open eyes – or be left without any future at all.
I spotted this cover over on Tez Says and was intrigued – and then I read the summary and thought “OMG I MUST READ THAT”. I am not at all a fan of the Disney version of Sleeping Beauty, but this this this…. just sounds fantastic. It’s the friggin’ sci-fi version of the tale! Goodbye castles and kingdoms, hello interplanetary empires. This is Sheehan’s debut novel, and I adore her explanation of the premise:
“I always thought the interesting thing about Sleeping Beauty wasn’t why she was put to sleep, but what she had to come to terms with afterward. Everything would have changed radically – technology and politics as well as social structure. She would have seemed like a foreigner in her own country.”
Apparently, this book is already available on Netgalley… just sayin’.
by Kay | Apr 6, 2011 | Weekly Feature |
“Waiting On” Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted over at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that are being eagerly anticipated.
All These Things I’ve Done by Gabrielle Zevin
Goodreads – September 27th 2011
From the author of the critically acclaimed Elsewhere comes this brilliant novel about an impossible romance, a family living outside of the law, and the ties that forever bind us.
Chocolate and coffee are illegal, paper is hard to find, water is increasingly scarce, and New York City is rife with crime and poverty. And yet, for Anya Balanchine, the sixteen-year-old daughter of the city’s most notorious (and dead) crime boss, life is fairly routine—going to school, taking care of her siblings and her dying grandmother, trying to avoid falling in love with the new assistant D.A.’s son, and avoiding her loser ex-boyfriend. That is until someone in her inner circle ends up poisoned by the chocolate her family manufactures and the police think she’s to blame. Suddenly, Anya finds herself thrust unwillingly into the spotlight — at school, in the news, and most importantly, within her mafiya family.
Engrossing and suspenseful, All These Things I’ve Done is an utterly unique, unputdownable read that blends both the familiar and fantastic
I’ve been longing for a Mafioso!YA forever. I have always loved stories set in the criminal underworld – The Godfather has been one of my very favourite films since I was a teen. But how do you make something like that work for a YA audience? Well, by having the criminal underground deal coffee instead of cocaine! Absolutely brilliant idea that I really cannot wait to read.
by Kay | Mar 30, 2011 | Weekly Feature |
“Waiting On” Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted over at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that are being eagerly anticipated.
Rip Tide by Kat FallsGoodreads – YA – August 2nd 2011 by Simon and Schuster Childrens Books (UK)
Return to the subsea frontier with Ty and Gemma, where the mysteries of the deep are deadlier than ever. With time running out for his parents, Ty’s desperation leads the two teenagers to the underwater underworld…and into an alliance with the outlaws of the Seablite Gang. But one mystery soon leads to another. How has an entire township disappeared? Why is the local sea-life suddenly so aggressive? And can the Seablite Gang be trusted…or are Ty and Gemma in deeper water than they realise?
I recently spotted the cover for Rip Tide, the sequel to the amazing Dark Life, over on goodreads and squeed with excitement. I really, really enjoyed Dark Life and felt like nowhere near enough people read it. And you should – it’s got underwater pirates, socially oppressive governments, and that ever-elusive male narrator. I cannot wait to read Rip Tide – my only lament is that it comes out in August. August? That’s forever-and-a-half away! *sighs dramatically*
